Nothing Important Happened 9 : William
Author: Vickie Moseley
Summary: post Existence series that takes a
different path than Season 9.
Category: MSR, A
Rating: E for everybody
Disclaimer: The characters belong to 20th Century
Fox and 1013 Productions. The idea for a ninth
season belongs to somebody, but they're smart to
remain nameless. I tried to fix things, but I didn't
infringe on the copyright. Frankly, I doubt anyone
involved would recognize the place.
Authors notes: I'm thinking on making this a series.
Let me know if I should.
vickiemoseley1978@yahoo.com
Nothing Important 9: William
Just outside Oregon Cave Junction, OR
Maggie smiled at Krycek as she stirred the pot on the stove.
"That sure doesn't smell like canned stew," Krycek said with a smile.
"I hope you don't mind. While you were getting the generator started I
snooped through the pantry. I doctored it up a little."
"Well, it's making my mouth water just smelling it, so doctor it all you
want." He looked over at the baby, sleeping peacefully in his infant
seat. "This guy sleeps through everything."
"They all do at that age," Maggie said. "Well, if you'll set the table,
we can eat."
They ate in companionable silence for a while, Krycek nodding
appreciatively to the 'chef'. "Maggie, you are welcome to doctor around
in my kitchen any time," he said, eliciting a smile from the woman.
"My pleasure." They went back to eating, but Maggie drew in a deep
breath, wondering exactly how to broach the subject she so desperately
wanted to address. "Alex, when do you think it will be safe enough to
contact Dana and Fox? I know they must be worried sick about the baby."
Alex put down his fork and sighed. "That's the thing. Right now, the
most we could do is contact them. They've already been informed that
you and William are in hiding and safe. If we risk contact, that puts
you on the radar again. I don't want to make any moves for at least two
or three days." He dropped his eyes to his plate. "I know it's not the
Ritz . . . "
Maggie reached across the table and clasped the younger man's good
hand. "Oh, Alex, that's not it, you must know that. This place is
wonderful." She looked around the kitchen, far more modern and equipped
than she expected of a cabin. She remembered the large, airy room with
the daybed and the full sized crib for William. And the view -- it was
nothing short of spectacular! "No, Alex, this place would get my vote
for my favorite getaway. I just know how much I worried as a young
mother, and Dana and Fox have been through so much."
"Believe me, I know," Krycek said, then at her shocked look, he
shrugged. "Not everything, of course. I just know what little I've
been told and I know how hard it would be to be separated from the ones
you love."
Before Maggie could respond, William began to whimper. "He probably
needs to be changed and then he'll want his bottle," she said, getting
up to attend to the baby. "Just leave the plates -- "
"Nonsense. You cooked, I do clean up. That's the way we roll in my
kitchen," Alex grinned at her. "Oh, here, let me get the bottle." He
got up and pulled one of the prepared bottles out of the refrigerator.
"I know the microwave is a no-no," he ventured. "But how do we heat this?"
"I packed a bottle warmer in the diaper bag. Tara loaned it to me for
the duration. It's in the bedroom."
Alex followed her into the room she and the baby shared. "Here, would
you mind holding him while I dig it out?" Without waiting for his
reply, Maggie handed him the baby.
William screwed up his face to cry, but Alex brought him up to his
shoulder, patting his back gently. "Now,now. You don't want to eat
your dinner cold, do you, Sport? Of course not. Let's get your bottle
warmed up."
Maggie found the bottle warmer quickly and turned to see Alex handling
William like a pro. She smiled at them softly. "You'll make a good
father someday, Alex."
His eyes darkened, but he said nothing.
Maggie sensed his discomfort. "I only meant you do so well -- I'm sorry
if I offended you."
"No, it's not that. It's just . . . I don't really see myself ever
settling down to have a family, that's all."
"Well, I'm sure Fox never thought he'd be a father one day. Remember,
there's always time for the things we really value." She took the baby
from his shoulder and made her way over to the changing table by the
window.
Krycek picked up the bottle warmer and regarded it. "I guess you're
right, Maggie. I'll be back when the bottle is ready."
Wasatch Mountains complex
Mulder woke up slowly, reveling in the feel of a warm, familiar body in
his arms.
"G'morning," Scully rasped, turning on her side, but not leaving the
circle of his embrace.
"Morning," he replied and promptly yawned. "Sorry," he added, ducking
his chin and kissing her lightly.
"I should bean Spender for beaning you, even if it did save your life,"
she grinned. "He couldn't have just grabbed you and wrestled you to the
ground? Handcuffed you? Hog-tied you?"
"Gee, Scully, remind me when we get to play 'cops and robber' again," he
said, kissing her once more.
She grinned kissed him back. "So, Dr. Kim has agreed to give me a tour
of the facilities today. She mentioned that they'd like me to help them
work on the manufacturing of the vaccine. Are you going to talk to the
Gunmen about when we're going to meet up with Mom and William?"
"Yes, I'd planned to call them this morning and continue to the next
phase of 'Operation: Getouttatown'," he said with a twinkle in his eye.
A second later, he grew serious. "I won't feel right until we get them
here. But Scully, what about your mom?"
She had finally squirmed out of her partner's arms and was pulling on
her clothing. "What do you mean? What about mom?"
Mulder sat up, mimicking her actions by dressing in his own discarded
jeans and tee shirt. "I mean, she'll be stuck here. Scully, we've
never wanted to endanger her, you never wanted to include her in this.
Now she'll be right smack in the middle of it all. And she probably
won't be able to go back to see Tara and Bill any time soon."
Scully chewed on her bottom lip. "Mulder, Mom is a lot tougher than you
think. I know she'll do whatever we ask of her. Even if it means
staying here for a while. But to be honest, I'm hoping . . . "
"That we'll find a way to end this quickly?" he offered.
"Pie in the sky?" she asked.
"Maybe. But if it is, I'm right there with you. I want this over,
Scully. So we can get down to the business of living our lives, raising
our son."
The Magic Bullet
Headquarters of the Lone Gun Men
"Lone Gun Men." Langly swiped at his hair as he answered the phone.
"Turn off the tape," came the response. The blond conspiracy theorist
smiled broadly. "The distinguished Mr. Hale!" he said affably. "How is
Mrs. Hale?"
"She's fine, and again, I owe you all big time. But we're concerned about
the littlest Hale. Mama and Papa want the baby home."
"Understood, understood. Hang on a minute. I think Fro was just online
with Dark Knight. Hey Frohike! Pick up the phone!" Langly completely
ignored the gasp of pain on the other end of the line as he screamed to
his cohort. "He'll be . . . "
"I got it, Blondie," Frohike said, picking up the line from another
room. "Mr. Hale, I presume."
"Gettin' psychic on me?" Mulder asked with a note of teasing.
"Nah, Byers finally got the caller ID to work on these lines. But I do
know why you're calling and I have some news."
"Hit me with it," Mulder requested.
"I was just chatting with our subscriber, his handle is Dark Knight. He
says the packages arrived safe and sound. Everything is set for the
next delivery. But he thinks it might be better if they came COD." He
waited and could almost hear his old friend Mulder's mind turning.
"It's better that way, you know. Less people to know -- "
"Yeah. I'm just . . . I just have another party to answer to, that's all."
"Company on the journey is not an option? Was there, um, damage to the
previous parcel?" Fro asked. All three Gun Men had been worried sick
about Scully and still couldn't believe she had escaped unharmed.
"No, it's not that, not entirely. Wear and tear mostly. But it's a
component in a much larger project and I don't want to pull it away for
something like this."
Frohike frowned. It was just like his friend to try and protect while
totally underestimating his life partner. "Friend, if you try to go all
macho on the ladies, they tend to kick your ass," the little man warned
sternly.
"And I've had my ass kicked by the best of 'em -- repeatedly," Mulder
replied.
"Look, what you two do in the bedroom -- give me more details or don't
tell me anything," Frohike griped.
"I'm hanging up now. But let's assume phase two will be implemented as
predetermined."
"Roger that. Take care." He heard the line disconnect and then stared
at the phone for a few seconds. Drawing in a breath, he resolutely
turned to the computer on his desk. Byers entered the room and saw him
typing.
"Was that Mulder?"
"Yeah," Fro answered, somewhat distracted to be holding two
conversations, one written, one spoken, at the same time.
"Are they going to pick up William and Mrs. Scully?"
"Of course," Fro replied shortly. "But he's pulling the Lone Ranger
kick again."
"He's not taking Scully? She'll murder him in his sleep!" Byers gasped.
"Yeah, well, when we talked yesterday, Mulder had some pretty good
ammunition to use against her," Fro countered, but his heart wasn't in
the argument. He continued typing for another few seconds and then
looked up. "There. Dark Knight is set, it's a go. Mulder leaves their
compound in," he glanced at his watch, "12 hours from this contact so
that he arrives exactly 24 hours from now, as planned."
"They should go together," Byers said, shaking his head. "Unless
there's a medical reason -- "
"No, Mulder assured me she's fine. Which means he's either going to not
tell her -- an option I hope to God he doesn't choose, or he's gonna
have to convince her to let him go alone."
"Why do I feel like they're going to need a good marriage counselor
before this is over?" Byers said with a heavy sigh.
"If they don't need an undertaker," Fro agreed with a nod.
Wasatch Mountains Compound
Mulder looked at his watch. He had enough time to get some stuff
together, prepare for his journey. In one hour he'd get an email from a
Mexican IPO for cheap Viagra. It would contain the GPS coordinates for
where his son and his partner's mother were being secreted. He could
then determine how much time it would take him to get to them and allow
him to plan their return route to the mountains.
He felt the butterflies start in his stomach. He missed their son, more
than he thought possible.
Mulder recalledhis feelings just a few short months previously,that
period when William was nothing more than an idea, a wish that was
mostly his partner's. He'd stopped by Scully's apartment while she was
in the hospital with the intention of bringingher some books from her
nightstand. One of the books was a basic pregnancy and parenting tome,
which he tucked in his jacket while searching for her overnight bag.
Later, after he'd dropped off the bag he realized he still had the book.
That night, in his just barely familiar apartment, lying on his couch,
he read the book cover to cover. One chapter in particular stayed with
him -- impending fatherhood. The book had obviously been written for
mothers-to-be, and the chapter on fatherhood was more ofan explanation
of men's reaction to pregnancy. The book made it clear that most men
would dote endlessly on their wife/partner, but pay little attention to
the baby or preparations for the birth. That was natural. It wasn't
real to the man. The male of the species couldn't feel the baby's
moments at all hours of the day or night as his mate could. It wasn't
until a man held the infant in his arms that the child became a reality.
That chapter had bothered Mulder for hours. Was that what Scully
thought? That he cared only for her and nothing for the baby growing
inside her? But then he thought back to how he acted and reacted. He
still felt awkward discussing the baby. To him, it was 'her' baby -- he
was just there to protect her, not it. If 'it' was protected at the
same time, that was just a happy coincidence. He winced when he
remembered how many times he'd referred to the baby as 'Scully's baby'.
In some respects he did have his reasons for distance. Scully was an
entirely private person. He realized almost immediately upon waking
from his 'death' that she hadn't confided in anyone about their
relationship -- that he was the baby's father. He didn't even question
her obvious desire to keep the paternity a secret. Who would want to
admit that they'd had sex and were pregnant by Spooky Mulder? It was
not something anyone would want on their resume.
But in the wee hours of the morning, he realized his distance even when
they were alone might possibly be interpreted by her as indifference.
He finally got up;dug around in the trunk he'd kept from his mother's
house in Greenwich and found exactly what he wanted. Then, as dawn
crept over the cityscape, he drove to Scully's apartment, let himself
in, and carefully replaced the impersonal sheets and blankets, the
present he'd originally givenher and presented her with something far
more connected -- his own doll, made for him at his birth by his
maternal grandmother. Rewrapping the package had taken dexterity, but
he was sure that the recipient was none the wiser. The look on her face
when she lifted the doll from the box was worth the sleepless night.
But he found out just how right the book was when Scully presented him
with William, warm from his nap, bundled in a downy soft blanket. When
he felt the weight of their son in his arms, the tiny face looking up at
him cross-eyed, when the baby calmed at the sound of his voice -- it was
a revelation to him. He looked over at Scully and his heart lurched
with the force of his love for both of them -- his partner and his son.
With every ounce of his soul he made a silent vow -- that he would never
fail them ,and thathewould not only protect but love both of them for
the rest of his life.
Now, he had to gather supplies so that they could be reunited, the three
of them.
Scully found him a few hours later, packed and talking to Jeffrey about
borrowing one of the vehicles.
"Mulder? When were you going to come get me?" she asked crossly. He
wouldn't look at her directly, just collected the keys and started
walking toward the shaft that she and Jeremiah had entered days before.
"Mulder," she said again, catching his sleeve.
"Go back, Scully. You already did the Rambo thing. Now it's my turn."
"He's my son," she argued, holding fast to his arm.
He stopped and turned toward her. "No, Scully. He's _our_ son," he
shot back.
She dipped her head in apology. "I know. I'm sorry. I didn't mean --"
She looked away, tears glistening in her eyes. She fought for and
found her composure in the space of a heartbeat. "Mulder, remember what
you told me when Kersh called? How they would try to separate us?"
"You mean you're now going to admit that staying together was the right
path when you tossed it aside on a whim?" he countered.
She bit her lip and he tilted his head back, eyes skyward. "Scully, I
don't want to fight."
"Yes, you do. You're still angry. Believe me, I know. I've been
there myself. But Mulder, we have to get past that, we have to get past
what I did. I just hope that some day you'll come to realize I left you
and William to protect you, not because I was leaving for good. I had
every intention of coming back to you as soon as I could."
He let his eyes meet hers. "I do know that, Scully. It just . . . it
just still hurts -- you know."
She tilted her head. "Being ditched always does," she said ruefully.
She reached over and grasped the handle of the pack he was carrying.
"Let's go bring our son home, Mulder. We'll talk about the rest of this
later."
He looked at her and then down at their hands, touching lightly on the
grip of the handle. Slowly, he nodded.
to be continued